Mga Kababayan Ko

As I was browsing through some forum sites, somebody posted a topic about the death of Francis Magalona, I thought it was another one of those repugnant hoaxes that circulated some time last year. I was gonna give them a piece of my mind when I found out that it was actually true. It was announced by Vic Sotto on their noontime show on Friday. Couldn't really believe it.

I know he has leukemia and all but I felt a little pinch in my heart. You see I'm a huge Eat Bulaga loyal. Been watching it for more than a decade, maybe more. It has already been a part of my life. It was a habit turned custom. Kiko's death has also left a hole in my heart. I remember listening to his songs back in school. Some of them were even the first OPMs I ever learned. I admired him for being a proud Filipino. And letting the world hear how proud he is.

My condolences to his family and friends.

Here are some pics taken from his website:

Check here for a video of Saksi about Kiko's death from GMANews.TV

Valentine Date

No, we didn't go on a date. Come to think of it, we've never celebrated Heart's Day. I've never given him chocolate on a Valentine's Day just like the 'Korean Tradition'(though we give each other chocolates or candies all the time ). It is so ironic because we actually had our very first date on a valentine's Day several years back. I was an Office Assistant in a Korean-owned company. He was there to tour and check out hagwons as well. Every afternoon, he would always drop by my desk to talk. He's fluent in English so our conversations are always enjoyable. We talked about everything from music to books to even politics. We found out that we had a lot of things in common. Several weeks into these long conversations, I was rather surprised when he asked me out to be his Valentine's Date. I wasn't really attracted to him, but I said yes to the date. We scheduled our date on the Saturday after Valentine's. We agreed to just meet somewhere in this mall. But come exactly Feb. 14, he dropped by the office to ask me if we could just go out that day after my work. He said he didn't want to wait for Saturday. So after work, we went to a mall, roamed around, talked a lot, grabbed something to eat- I can't even remember what, probably pizza. He walked me back home, yeah we just walked, took us maybe an hour. We walked and talked more, about things we saw along the way, movies we have seen, about France and Ireland, anything, everything. The date was so simple but quite nice, nothing romantic, nothing cheesy. It wasn't even that memorable. But years after that, here we are- married, with a child going to grade school this year. We've never celebrated Valentine's nor anniversary, but once in a while we would go to a nice cafe or drive near the beach or lake, there we would have one of those long conversations. He'd sometimes give me gifts for no reason. He always says 'We don't need to celebrate every occasion but we also don't need any occasion to celebrate'.

Happy Valentine's Day Appa...

This is what my daughter said when she handed her handmade Valentine's Card and some chocolates to her father. So sweet hubby can't stop smiling. ^^

Beethoven Virus Location

While everybody is rushing to go to their hometowns, we decided to take a little trip to Gapyeong. We visited that cute little village Petit France. This is where they shot scenes for one of my favorite Korean drama Beethoven Virus. Although it was freezing cold, we were ecstatic going around the place and taking lots of pictures. Pose here and there. Reminiscing the scenes on my mind over and over again, kkk. I was stunned when I saw Kang Mae's office, there's nothing too grand about it but I guess you would feel the same if you're secretly in love with him.. kkkk.

There's a good view of the frozen Bukhan River from Petit France which I really love. Inside the little french village, there's some memorial hall, mini-theater where you can watch little prince, souvenir shop, a pretty French couryard and also some room you can rent if you want to experience staying in a French Village for a while.

The Best Job in the World Ever

Imagine just lazing around the island on the Great Barrier Reef for six months and getting paid a whopping AUD 150,000.(about USD100,000)! Seems like the best job? Well, it is.

I was browsing the net last night when I came across this very unique 'job ad'. It promises of the Best Job in the World Experience.The job is prettey easy. And pays too.
Here's some excerpts from the website.

The Best Job in the World – Island Caretaker Great Barrier Reef
Tourism Queensland is seeking applicants for the best job in the world! The role of Island Caretaker is a six-month contract, based on luxurious Hamilton Island in the Great Barrier Reef. It’s a live-in position with flexible working hours and key responsibilities include exploring the islands of the Great Barrier Reef to discover what the area has to offer. You’ll be required to report back on your adventures to Tourism Queensland headquarters in Brisbane (and the rest of the world) via weekly blogs, photo diary, video updates and ongoing media interviews. On offer is a unique opportunity to help promote the wondrous Islands of the Great Barrier Reef.
Other duties may include (but are not limited to)
Feed the fish - There are over 1,500 species of fish living in the Great Barrier Reef. Don’t worry you won’t need to feed them all.
Clean the pool - The pool has an automatic filter, but if you happen to see a stray leaf floating on the surface it’s a great excuse to dive in and enjoy a few laps.
Collect the mail ? During your explorations, why not join the aerial postal service for a day? It’s a great opportunity to get a bird’s eye view of the reef and islands.
About the job package
Living above the Great Barrier Reef is a pretty unique benefit, but the successful candidate will also be paid a salary package of AUD $150,000 for the six-month contract. You’ll receive return airfares from your nearest capital city (in your home country), accommodation and transport on Hamilton Island, travel insurance for the contract period, computer, internet, digital video and stills cameras access, plus travel to a number of the other Islands of the Great Barrier Reef. The six-month contract commences 1stJuly 2009.

Just think about being on the Great Barrier Reef (yes Australia!) doing things most people can only dream about. Staying on a luxury three-bedroom property with pool, Nemo at your beck and call. And bloging too. That discover what the area has to offer probably means you have to do the 'hard work' of going swimming around the island, scuba diving, snorkelling, maybe take some photo stills and videos while you're down there (or should I say down under :-p) hiking and hopping around at least 25 island resorts. And did I say BLOGGING too?
You want that job? Apply here. I heard even someone from the Vatican City checked out the website.

Coffee Makes You See Ghosts

This article instantly caught my attention. You see, I'm a coffee drinker. I drink truckloads of coffee a day. Even more here in Korea, with all those different flavors of instant coffee available. Apparently, caffeine is linked to seeing ghosts. I read from skynews that a research from the University of Durham suggests that "people who drink more than seven cups of instant coffee a day have an increased tendency to hallucinate", "High caffeine users may even think they sense non-existent people", researchers say. Other experiences reported are seeing things that aren't there, hearing voices and sensing the presense of dead people. Oh my, this probably explains why I keep on seeing things on the corners of my eyes when I alone. Or the voices at night when the lights are off. Hehehe. Kidding aside, Dr Charles Fernyhough, the co-author of the study, pointed out that the research only showed an association between caffeine intake and hallucination proneness, not a causal link. Also other sources of caffeine are tea, chocolate, "pep" pills(aka stimulants) and energy drinks. You can read more here and here.

Filipino Version of Twilight on ABS-CBN

ABSCBN is said to have bagged the rights for a Local TV production of the phenomenal Twilight. Reports (or rumors! ) about the production which is set in February are all over. The TV series will be entitled : would you believe- TAKIPSILIM. The whole list of cast, director and even the shooting locations are even released.

But netizens are in outrage about this. A lot of Filipino fans are in protest. Nobody likes the idea of Twilight being remade into a local telenovela. Tons of them claimed to have sent hate emails to ABSCBN. Some believed it is a hoax. I can't find a confirmed report about this. Though I remember reading it on ABSCBNnews website, but for some reason it's no longer accessible. Could it be just a 'leak' to test the waters? Or a fan's dream getting out of hand?
And there's also the issue of acquiring the rights for only 1M USD. Plus the actors playing the Edward and Bella characters are well not too popular.

I'm not a big fan of the movie nor the book but I wouldn't want Edward to be saying (probably the most emotional line in both the book and movie) something like this to Bella:

"Wala na akong lakas pa para layuan ka!"

Here's the fan-made poster of Shaina and Rayver:

Sexy Obama in Hawaii

If the news about the exiting GW Bush and shoe-throwing incident in Iraq left people in awe This picture of the incoming US President Barrack Obama draws oos and aahs. It was taken few days before Christmas in Hawaii where B, his wife Michelle and the girls were vacationing. On the looks of this picture, he's definitely fit to run the US government. I mean look at those abs! He may not only get the 'Most Powerful Man' title next year but could probably snatch another title from Wolverine's claws.

Merry Christmas

We may not have the Christmas decor, lights nor the tree but we still feel the Christmas spirit here in Korea. Last night (Christmas Eve) TW brought a cute Christmas Cake when he got home from work. There's even a hat for the kiddie. Last Sunday we had a celebration at church. The kids' ministry prepared some Christmas songs and performed on the stage to join the main service. It was heartwarming to hear the children sing the "HAppy Birthday Jesus" song. Then there was some interactive mini concert after.
It was much, much more different than what we were used to back home but a meaningful Christmas is never impossible wherever you are in the world.
Merry Christmas! Joyeux Noël ! Feliz Navidad ! Maligayang Pasko ! and of course-
메리 크리스마스 !

GW Bush Shoed in Iraq

Last week we heard about the shoe-throwing incident from Iraq starring none other than exiting US President George W. Bush.

'Bush ducked, and the shoes, flung one at a time, sailed past his head during the news conference with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in his palace in the heavily fortified Green Zone.
The shoe-thrower -- identified as Muntadhar al-Zaidi, an Iraqi journalist with Egypt-based al-Baghdadia television network -- could be heard yelling in Arabic: "This is a farewell ... you dog!"
While pinned on the ground by security personnel, he screamed: "You killed the Iraqis!"
Al-Zaidi was dragged away. While al-Zaidi was still screaming in another room, Bush said: "That was a size 10 shoe he threw at me, you may want to know." '

Though he called that episode one of the 'weirdest' moments of his presidency. It had become a kind of amusement for a lot people. An online game was even created. Sock and Awe was hastily created by Alex Tew over some beer and pizza. The objective of the game is easy: Hit President Bush in the face with your shoes! The game has even become a surprise hit, with 61,315,642 shoes succesfully hit President Bush.
Here are some pics-